Let's All Go to the Lobby!

Yesterday I went to a screening of "Funny Games" by Michael Haneke, of "The Piano Teacher" and "Cache" fame. The film is actually a shot-by-shot remake Haneke's 1997 version of the same film. The film is brutal, intense, and kind of scary, to tell the truth. It conveys the same sort of tension I felt while watching "No Country for Old Men" and displays the same violent explosions of "A Clockwork Orange." You definitely need to be cognizant of who you watch this film with because it is not for the faint of heart or easily jilted. You have been warned.

Last night I rented five films and watched two: "We Own The Night" and "Eastern Promises." Night was conventional: set in the 80's it's a story of drugs, cops, and brothers. It was really pretty tame for some other drug films I've seen (I love you "To Live and Die in L.A."). Eva Mendes was kinda hot, but the film overall just felt stilted. Promises, on the other hand, was really good, much better than David Cronenberg's last film, "A History of Violence." I had heard a lot about the film, particularly the shower scene. The violence was gory, the acting was adequate, and the story was actually pretty good.

Monday should prove to be really exciting as I will attend a screening of "Paranoid Park." Gus Van Sant is at it again! Van Sant has had the strangest career. His films have always been different, against the grain, and flat out good. Paranoid Park has been called one of the best films of 2007, by the precious lucky few who have been able to see it. Now that it's getting released, hopefully the masses feel the same. The film savvy masses, anyway.

As I was posting the picture below, I suddenly remembered the time Kara and I were driving down Kingshighway and I saw a (presumably) homeless guy run up to the side of a building and started relieving himself. In the middle of the day. Right off one of St. Louis' busiest streets.

This guy just looks awesome.